


Change The Fates' Design

by thekeybladetomyheart (ObsessedMuch)



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: But sorikai is heavily implied here, Canon Compliant, Canonical Character Death, Fix-It of Sorts, I Can't Believe I Wrote This, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Multi, Post-Kingdom Hearts III, Sassy Riku, Spoilers - Kingdom Hearts III, The focus is on Riku and Sora, mostly - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-07
Updated: 2019-02-07
Packaged: 2019-10-23 19:03:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17689109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ObsessedMuch/pseuds/thekeybladetomyheart
Summary: After the final battle with Master Xehanort, Sora knows he still has one thing he has to do. Actually, make that two.Features bits of the final cutscene, but with a twist.





	Change The Fates' Design

**Author's Note:**

> This starts basically with the canon ending, picking up right from when you beat Xehanort, and then spirals way out of control. There are bits of the in-game dialogue, though I tweaked a few lines just because they bothered me for one reason or another.

The end of the Keyblade War was quiet, a stark contrast to the sounds of Keyblade clashing and magic spells shooting through the air. The wind tugged at Riku’s hair and kicked up dust into his eyes, but he remained staring at the spot where he’d seen Kingdom Hearts fade away. If the silence around him was any indication, so did everyone else. Finally, Mickey broke the quiet with a sigh.

“It’s finally over.” Everyone nodded, some agreeing vocally, but there was one voice notably absent.

“No,” Sora said. Riku turned, catching the way he shook his head and stared at the ground. The defeated slump of his shoulders instantly reminded Riku that they were still one member short.

“We’ll find Kairi.” He pushed all of his own fear and anger out of his voice. Sora needed reassurance right now, especially given the way he’d fallen apart earlier. “Let’s head back to Master Yen Sid. We can figure it out.” They always did, and this time would be no different. He wouldn’t _let_ it be different.

Sora didn’t even bother to turn around. “No. I know what to do.”

Mickey started. “Sora…”

Finally, he turned around to face them. “My whole journey began the day I lost her and Riku. And every time I find her…she slips away again. I thought we’d finally be together after this. But she’s out there, alone.” His eyes grew hard, and he clenched his fists. “Not for one more second.”

Riku’s first instinct was to protest, especially when it became clear that Sora intended to do this alone. But he watched as Donald, Goofy and Mickey tried to talk him down. He saw the fiery determination that lit up those blue eyes, saw the firm set of his jaw. In that instant, he realized that nothing they said would stop him.

He’d watched Sora break down in furious, despondent tears only hours before, convinced that he was nothing without his friends. He’d called himself worthless, like he couldn’t see how incredibly special he was.

The boy standing in front of him now was different. Despite the fear that Riku could still see lurking behind the bravado, Sora was determined to do this alone. He needed to prove—if only to himself—that he _could_ do this. So, Riku bit back his initial response, crouching down to speak to Mickey.

“Let him go, Mickey.” The King looked up at him in shock, as if he couldn’t believe what Riku was saying. “His heart and his mind are made up. Now believe in him; if anyone can pull this off, it’ll be Sora.” He knew he’d said the right thing when Sora’s face lit up with a smile. There was more he wanted to say, but not in front of a group of relative strangers.

“Yeah…” Mickey said faintly. “Safe journey, Sora.”

“Thank you,” Sora responded, before turning away from them. Riku was just about to give his own parting words when the other boy froze before abruptly turning back around. “Actually…there _is_ one thing I need to do first.”

Riku couldn’t help the snort that escaped him. “What happened to ‘not one more second?’”

The slight hint of a pout appeared along the corners of Sora’s mouth. “But it’s really important!”

“Okay, I’ll bite. What is this really important thing you need to do?”

“I need to share a paopu fruit with you.” His cheery smile was nearly blinding.

Riku froze halfway through the act of opening his mouth for a smart remark. “You…what?” His voice sounded thin even to his own ears. Maybe that rough landing earlier had actually knocked something loose.

“I need to share a paopu fruit with you,” Sora repeated, slower this time. His eyes were locked with Riku’s, and there was no hesitation in them.

“But why?” Riku asked. “You already shared one with Kairi.” He’d seen them on the tree while he’d been talking to his Replica. It had been a very long time coming, but that hadn’t softened the pang that had resonated in his heart. His hand lifted to rub at the remembered pain in his chest before he could think better of it. Sora’s smile didn’t waver.

“You didn’t honestly think we were going to leave you out like that, did you?” he asked, his cheerful demeanor faltering when Riku reared back in surprise. His eyes widened. “You…you did. You thought that Kairi and I were going to leave you behind, just like that.” The indignant frown that followed would have made Riku laugh if it weren’t for the fact that his entire world was being turned upside down.

What did Sora even mean? Even if the legend of the paopu fruit didn’t necessarily indicate it, everyone on the island considered it an act of the utmost romance. Sora might be oblivious, but even he couldn’t manage to miss something that obvious. Riku shook his head. He was clearly reading too much into this, because there was no way either of the other two felt that way about him. Two calloused hands grabbing one of his own pulled him out of the downward spiral of his thoughts, and he looked up to meet Sora’s steady gaze once again.

“Riku, the plan was always for the three of us to share a paopu. Together. But then you asked for some time alone and we wanted to respect that, but we didn’t really want to wait until after the battle. That was a little selfish of us, but I’m not sure where all of us would be if we hadn’t. So I’m not sorry about that.

“What I _am_ sorry about is that you saw us and thought that was the end of the story. That you weren’t just as important to us as we are to you.”

Riku’s mouth had fallen open again at some point during Sora’s speech, even though he had literally no words to say. He was still trying to grasp the concept of speech when he heard the sound of someone clearing their throat behind him.

Just like that, he was suddenly—painfully—aware of the group of people witnessing their conversation. Judging by the way Sora’s cheeks suddenly flushed, so was he.

The other boy pulled back quickly, crossing his arms behind his head as he did so. “So, what do you say?” he asked with exaggerated nonchalance. “Will you share a paopu fruit with me?”

“That depends.” The words spilled out of Riku’s mouth, thankfully signaling the return of his verbal skills.

“On what?”

“Are you going to insist on doing that in front of an audience, too?”

Sora looked at him in disbelief for a second before bursting into bright laughter. Everyone else joined in as well, some more awkwardly than others.

“No audience, I promise,” Sora finally choked out once he managed to compose himself.

“Then yes, I’ll share a paopu with you. We’ll have to make a stop at home first, though. It’s not exactly something I carry around in my back pocket.”

“For shame. I thought you were supposed to be the responsible one.”

The trip back to Destiny Islands was simultaneously the longest and shortest ride of his life. Sora was practically vibrating in place, though Riku couldn’t tell if it was from excitement or impatience. Most likely, it was a combination of both.

Thankfully, Mickey and the others were kind enough to drop them off first. Sora scrambled off the ship as soon as it touched down on the sand, leaving Riku to follow at a slightly more dignified—but no less hurried—pace.

Knocking down a couple of the fruits from the tree was almost laughably easy, especially when he remembered how difficult it had been two years ago. When they each had a fruit in hand, they sat down on the tree.

“I don’t…really know how to do this,” Riku admitted as he ran shaky fingers over the surface of the paopu.

“It’s easy,” Sora replied brightly. “Just hold it out near my mouth.”

Riku did as he was instructed, holding it out while Sora mirrored the action. The younger boy was kind enough not to mention the tremor in Riku’s hands.

At Sora’s prompting, he took a bite of the fruit in front of his mouth and felt the slight tug on the one in his hand while Sora did the same. As he chewed, enjoying the uniquely tart flavor, he couldn’t help but wait to feel…something. He thought he’d get some indication that the connection had been created, but nothing clicked into place.

“How do we know it worked?” Sora laughed at his question.

“We just have to believe that it did,” he said simply. He shrugged at the sidelong look Riku gave him, jumping down from the tree with ease. “I would say you should practice so it’s not so awkward when you share one with Kairi, but this isn’t exactly something you can practice easily. At least, not without making me _really_ jealous.” The wolfish grin on his face took the edge off his words, and Riku rolled his eyes.

“Alright Mister Hero, if you’re really going to do this, you should probably leave before I change my mind about letting you go alone.” Sora gave him a cheeky salute, closing his eyes and turning to face the ocean. He summoned his Keyblade and lifted it up towards the sky. Light flared. When it cleared, there was a familiar-looking pink portal right in front of Sora, who had a hand outstretched towards it.

“Hey,” Riku called out. Sora turned to look at him over his shoulder. He let his eyes take in Sora’s profile one last time, suddenly nervous. “Don’t do anything stupid, okay? And don’t take too long, or else I might have to come after you.”

Sora beamed. “I’m counting on that. But I’ll be back before you know it.” With that, he touched the portal and vanished from sight.

“You’d better be,” Riku said quietly, even though Sora was already gone. Now, all he could do was wait.

**Author's Note:**

> When I was watching this scene initially, it really bothered me that they didn't give Riku any serious reaction to Kairi's death or Sora's decision here to go after her. This piece essentially started as a way to work out what Riku might have been thinking, and actually gave me room to think about how it fit his characterization (not that I'm entirely willing to give the writing team the benefit of the doubt, considering how they used Kairi as a plot device during the entire late-game).
> 
> That being said, there was no way Riku was going to let Sora go without a) some really sappy comment about how he knew Sora could do it, b) a snarky comment or c) both. Obviously, I elected for both. 
> 
> Also, I just want you all to know that I wrote most of this on Post-It notes (16 of them, actually) while at work. 
> 
> Working Title: Stop Assassinating Riku's Characterization 2k19


End file.
